Stage II - Management & Financial Accounting

The Stage II controlling training strengthens your ability to translate performance-relevant information into well-informed decisions. You will learn to confidently understand the connections between management accounting and financial accounting, identify opportunities and risks early on, and actively support corporate management.

By combining cost accounting, financial analysis, investment analysis, and value-oriented management, you’ll develop a holistic understanding of a company’s economic drivers. At the same time, you’ll gain confidence in working with balance sheets, income statements, and cash flow statements, as well as in understanding the impact of the German Commercial Code (HGB) and International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) on key metrics and decisions.

Practical case studies and the targeted use of AI will help you conduct analyses more efficiently and present complex issues in an understandable way.

After the seminar you will be able to:

• confidently identify the connections between management accounting and financial accounting and apply them to corporate management
• apply contribution margin calculations, transfer pricing (internal activity allocation and transfer prices), and process cost accounting in a targeted manner
• analyze financial metrics and evaluate their significance in a well-founded manner
• understand the balance sheet, income statement, and cash flow statement as an integrated management system
• evaluate and justify investment decisions using appropriate methods
• use value-oriented metrics such as WACC and EVA for corporate management
• understand and communicate the effects of accounting decisions under HGB and IFRS on financial metrics
• act as a competent point of contact for financial decisions and corporate management

Seminar Content

Management Accounting as the Foundation of Corporate Management

• Overview of key controlling and cost accounting principles
• Contribution margin analysis as a decision-support tool
• Analyzing customer and product profitability
• Pricing and pricing approaches in controlling
• Evaluating customer and product portfolios

Modern Cost Accounting and Value-Based Management

• Understanding and applying activity-based costing
• Classifying intercompany prices and transfer pricing
• Internal activity allocation and center management
• Value-based corporate management with WACC and EVA
• Practical exercises and case studies

Understanding and Using Financial Accounting

• Relationships between the income statement, balance sheet, and cash flow statement
• Fundamentals of HGB accounting
• Accounting principles and their impact on financial statements
• Analyzing financial issues in a structured manner

Financial Analysis and Business Valuation

• Analysis of annual financial statements and financial ratios
• Understanding and interpreting the cash flow statement
• Rating approaches and creditworthiness assessment
• Identifying companies’ financial strengths and weaknesses
• Deriving recommendations for action from financial analyses

Investment Analysis and Decision Support

• Fundamentals of investment analysis
• Profitability analyses and investment portfolios
• Evaluating qualitative and quantitative (Net Present Value, Payback Period, Internal Rate of Return) decision factors
• Presenting investment decisions in a management-friendly format

HGB, IFRS, and Their Impact on Key Ratios

• Understanding key differences between HGB and IFRS
• Impact of research and development costs on financial statements and key performance indicators
• Accounting for goodwill and its impact on management
• A comparison of provisions and lease accounting
• Analyzing the effects of accounting decisions on key financial ratios

AI in Finance & Accounting

• Using AI to analyze and structure financial issues
• AI-supported analysis of accounting case studies
• More efficient analysis of financial data
• Using AI as a sparring partner for analyses and presentations

 Key Benefits for Decision-Makers Regarding This Stage

After Stage II, your controllers will have a solid understanding of corporate management using management and financial accounting. They will be able to confidently analyze financial information, provide well-founded support for investment decisions, and understand the impact of accounting decisions on key performance indicators and corporate management.

By combining cost accounting, financial analysis, value-based management, and modern AI applications, they create a robust basis for decision-making for management and business units. This enhances the quality of financial decisions, strengthens transparency in corporate management, and sustainably improves the performance of the finance and controlling departments.

Target groups

The Seminar Stage II – Management & Financial Accounting is addressed to managers and employees in controlling, financial accounting as well as in cost accounting, corporate planning, management information systems, business administration and development.